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A black car left the fishing village, got on the highway, and ran at top speed.

Hailey Anderson, who just had her 19th birthday, looked out of the window at the quickly receding trees. Her face was expressionless.

Leilani, a maid who was sent there to pick her up, was playing with her phone raptly in the passenger seat.

The entire carriage was filled with the noise of the phone and Leilani's boisterous laughter.

She hadn't reached Anderson's door yet, but the maid had already shown such an attitude. Imagine what she was going to face.

According to Leilani, she was Melody Anderson's daughter. At her young age, Melody was capricious and ignorant. Her family found her a good marriage partner, but she ran away with a toyboy. In the end, the man cheated her out of her money and left.

In his anger, William Anderson, the patriarch, disowned his daughter. Melody felt too ashamed to go back and chose to marry a random guy. Then, her contact with her family was lost for 20 years.

The maid also claimed that William had been missing his daughter. Upon hearing the news of Melody's death, the old man was seriously ill and insisted on taking Hailey back. On top of that, he would acknowledge her at the birthday banquet tomorrow.

At that, the corner of Hailey's mouth curved up in a faint sneer.

William had her back just for trade.

The main business of Anderson Group was health care. Last month, Jack Anderson, William's eldest son, signed a 20-million-yuan supply contract with a company from Country M. It was their largest order in the past five years.

One month later, right before the delivery date, their partner suddenly disappeared.

Apparently, Jack was caught in a fraud.

20 million yuan's worth of goods was overstocked. If they couldn't sell them off and get the payment, bankruptcy could be expected soon.

Then someone came up with the idea of seeking capital injection through marriage.

The Anderson Family soon found a buyer-The Cox Family from Sea City. Their third son was paralyzed from a car accident.

There was only one girl in the Anderson Family at a marriageable age, but Eliza Anderson was the beloved granddaughter and the apple of William's eye. The old man would not marry her off and shifted his attention to the other granddaughter. Hailey was living in a small fishing village.

The car got off the highway, ran into the bustling urban area, and stopped at a traffic light.

Sea City was the largest metropolis in Nine Continent. This city and the capital city, Dawn, were laurelled as the Twin Pearls of the Empire.

Hailey looked out of the window and saw a black Rolls Royce Phantom next to their car. It happened that she owned the same model in the same color.

Out of curiosity, she stared at the car. Just then, its window dropped, revealing a reserved and impeccable side face. Under the sunlight, the man was holding a phone diagonally to take pictures.

Hailey simmered with laughter. It turned out cool, and ascetic men would also take selfies.

When the green light was on, the cars started again. One turned left and the other right...

Hailey snapped her gaze back and sat properly in the back seat.

Bzzt...

Her cell phone vibrated in her bag. Hailey took it out and unlocked the screen. On a communication application with a puppy icon popped up a message.

Sweet Dog: The weather in Sea City is great today. I just got off the plane.

The message was followed by a picture of white clouds and blue sky. The clouds looked like a puppy wagging its tail.

Her fingers danced on the keyboard.

Sea Rafflesia: I arrived in Sea City, too. Now we're in the same time zone.

Sweet Dog: How is the new environment?

Hailey glanced at Leilani, who was lying in the seat, snoring. She grinned.

Sea Rafflesia: Well, a lot of interesting people. It's gonna be fun.

"Here we are."

Leilani folded the seat and pointed to a luxurious villa outside, "This is your grandfather's house."

She said so proudly as if she were the owner.

Hailey put away her phone, opened the car door, hoisted her bag onto her shoulder, and got off tactfully.

She looked at the old villa. Before coming here, she had done her research.

The Andersons moved into this house 20 years ago. Until now, the owner of the property was still Melody.

Just then, a fiery Porsche dashed over and pulled off at the gate.

The window at the driver's seat rolled down, revealing a pretty face.

"The young lady is back." Leilani put on a respectful face and went up.

Eliza, the young lady of the Anderson Family, took a glance at Hailey. In a white T-shirt and jeans, the girl looked prim. "So, it is her?" She curled up her lips to sneer.

"Yes, she is your cousin." Leilani nodded.

"Heh, my cousin is the young lady of the Torres Family and not a hick." Eliza rolled her eyes.

"Miss, you're right. When I went there, she was digging the mud to catch crabs. Even beggars in Sea City are cleaner than her. Unable to bear the dirty scene, I bought a 20-yuan T-shirt for her and tidied her up."

Before Leilani could continue with more flattery, the car window had been rolled up. Eliza stepped on the accelerator and drove to the garage.

Leilani inhaled the gas and felt displeased. Turning to the dull girl, she reprimanded, "Are you dumb? Don't you know basic etiquette? She is your cousin."

Seemingly frightened, Hailey hung her head and rubbed her hands uneasily.

"What are you waiting for? Go in there and greet the seniors."

The maid dragged her towards the door and gave her a pinch on her arm.

Keeping her head low, Hailey pursed her lips. A flicker of coldness flashed across her eyes.

They entered the house and reached the main hall.

A servant went upstairs to report. After around ten minutes, a middle-aged woman with black curls came down the second floor. In an emerald silk dress, she wore fine makeup and held a handbag. Seemingly, she was going out.

"Hailey? You are so pretty. Oh, you may not know me. I'm your aunt." Amaya Gray showed an amiable smile on her well-maintained face, but her eyes were thick with contempt.

"Your grandfather and uncle have gone to the office. They will be back in the afternoon."

Amaya came downstairs, walked up, and froze. This girl had Melody's eyes.

"My dear girl, you must have been through a lot of hardships in the countryside. We're so happy to have you back. From now on, this is your home."

"Thank you, auntie." Hailey bowed her head and responded in a faint voice.

Amaya finally rested her mind at ease. Thankfully, this girl was timid, dull, and easy to manipulate.

Just then, Eliza came in on her high heels after parking her car.

"Eliza, come and meet Hailey. She is the daughter of your aunt." Amaya introduced her immediately.

Her nose in the air, Eliza took a condescending look at Hailey.

"I'm tired and going for a nap." Eliza flung her head and went upstairs. Yesterday, she went to celebrate her friend's birthday and stayed up.

"Eliza, have your lunch before your nap. I've asked the chef to stew bird's nest soup for you."

"Alright, stop nagging."

Amaya looked upstairs lovingly and soon heard a slam of the door.

She turned back and continued with a bland tone, "You must be tired from the trip. Go take a rest; I've had your room ready."

Without waiting for Hailey's reply, she called over a maid.

"Show her the room."

Amaya then went out. There was a card game waiting for her, and she didn't want to be late.

Leilani came up and led Hailey to a room in the far corner of the first floor. It was not small but stuffed with lumbers.

There was only a single bed and a small table by the door.

"The guest room upstairs was renovated a few days ago, and the smell is still pungent. Miss, please slum it here for a couple of days."

Leilani said indifferently and left.

Hailey entered the house without turning on the lights. There was a window blocked by lumbers. Still, sunlight found its way in.

She closed the door, sat on the bed, and began to sort out her luggage.

Her luggage was meager. Apart from toiletries, there were only two sets of clothes and a medical manuscript.

The manuscript was the life work of her mother and the most valuable item to Hailey.

Melody grew up with a passion for medicine, and her talent was unparalleled. Hailey found it hard to reach her mother's level and had difficulty understanding some parts of the manuscript.

25 years ago, her mother established Melody Pharmaceutical, which became Anderson Group later.

Owing to her superb medical skills and extensive pharmaceutical research, Melody did well in running the company. Thanks to her, William climbed up the social ladder.

Even now, the main products of Anderson Group were developed from her formulas.

Dissatisfied with the marriage arranged by her family, Melody ran away with her beloved. The Andersons took over the company but had no ability to launch new products.

While breakthroughs were made in biotech every year, the Andersons sat on Melody's legacy instead of investing in R&D.

Even if they didn't lose the 20-million-yuan order, the company still couldn't avoid the fate of declining.

Hailey stroked the manuscript and fell into contemplation.

A month ago, she just had her 19th birthday.

Mateo Diaz told her that he was neither her biological father nor Melody's husband.

As far as she could remember, she grew up in a small fishing village. Like the other fishermen, their family of three lived in a hut. During the day, her father would go fishing in the sea. Her mother would send her to school and then work in a local clinic.

When she was five years old, Melody suddenly disappeared.

She and Mateo searched for a long time but to no avail.

Later, Mateo took her away from the fishing village.

"Hailey, your mother is the eldest daughter of the Anderson Family. Back then, she was forced to jump into the sea. Narrowly escaping death, she then came to the fishing village. To keep you, she didn't go back to Sea City again."

"Hailey, everything owned by the Andersons was earned by your mother. They belong to you."

...

Soon, it was lunchtime, and a maid came to call Hailey.

Well-mannered, she sat at the dining table.

Woken up by the maid, Eliza came down the stairs with an unhappy face.

When she raised her eyes, she saw Hailey in her chair and felt displeased.

What was Grandpa thinking! Why did he suddenly bring back a village girl?

Before this, she was the only young lady in the house...

Eliza walked up, surprised to find the skin of the village girl so delicate although she was wearing cheap clothes.

Staying up all night, she looked into the mirror just now and spotted a big pimple on her forehead.

Jealousy immediately got the better of her. In this house, she was always the stunning one!

While Hailey was diving into her meal, a hand suddenly stretched over and snatched her bowl away.

"Hey, bumpkin, does the bird's nest soup taste good?" Eliza curled up her lips to sneer.

"You like it?"

Eliza loosened her hand, and the bowl crashed on the floor. The soup spilled all over the marble floor!

"You wanna eat? Kneel and lick it clean like a dog."

Eliza smiled broadly, but her eyes were thick with viciousness and ridicule.